Hammock-support.



' m1 f7|4,34a. 11 'x Patented Nov. 25, |902.

D.-F. YOUNGBLDUD. 4

f"Armonk suPPnRT.

(Application med Mar. 31, 1902.)

(No Model.)

Suma/Mo@ @9i/wwwa UNITED STATES ATENT OFFICE.

DAVID FRANKLIN YOUNGBLOOD, OF SAN ANTONIO, TEXAS.

HAMIVIOCK-SUPPORT.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 714,348, dated November25, 1902- Application filed March 31, 1902. Serial No. 100.810. (Nomodel.)

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, DAVID FRANKLIN YOUNGBLOOD, a citizen of the UnitedStates, residing at San Antonio, in the county of Bexar and State ofTexas, have invented a new and usefulHammock-Support, of which thefollowing is a specification.

In the construction of hammocks for jails and similar institutions ithas been the custom to employ duck or similar fabric' for the bodies andto support the same by straps, several of which are bolted to each endand are secured to the walls of the cells. There are several objectionsto this construction'. In the first place should the hammock becomesoiled or infected before it is washed the supporting devices must beremoved, and this` consumes considerable time not only in the removal,but also in the replacement. again, the bolts pass directly through thefabric and often tear the same, practically destroying the hammock-body.Another very serious objection is that these leather straps have to bearon metal stirrups, so that they are very soon cutthrough, and the momentone gives way the others on that end usually tear out, therebydestroying the usefulness of the hammock.

The present invention relatesto hammocks of this character; and theobject thereof is to improve the supporting devices therefor, saidimproved devices being so constructed that they may be applied to thehammock-body without making openings therein or otherwise inj urying thefabric, and while being securely fastened to said hammock-body they mayreadily be removed, if desired, either for the purpose of cleansing thebody or substituting a new one, thus overcoming the objections notedabove.

The preferred embodiment of the invention is fully illustrated in theaccompanying draw- Then,

responding parts in all the iigures of the drawings.

In carrying out the invention as shown, a pair of clamping-sections 10and 11 are provided,each consisting of shank portions 12 and coactingjaws 13. The jaws are considerably wider than the shank portions, andtheir inner coacting faces are preferably provided with transversecorrugations 14, saidfaces being disposed in angular relation to theinner faces of the shank portions. The two sections are connected by aclamp-bolt 15, which passes through the shank portions adjacent to theinner ends of the jaws, and one of the sections is provided at its innerend with positioning-lugs 16, arranged to engage over the side edges ofthe other section, said lugs, however, terminating short of the jaws, soas to leave the adjacent faces and edges of the jaws perfectly free andunobstructed. Both jaws may be provided on their outer faces withstrengthening-ribs 17, which are arranged in divergent relation, asshown in Fig. l. The lower section 10 is provided at its rear end with adepending hook 18, that is` located in the same vertical plane as thesections and is arranged to detachably engage in an ear, as 19, securedto the wall 2O of the cell.

In use the end of the hammock (designated by 21) is placed between thecoacting jaws, which because of their unobstructed edges and facespermit the fabric to extend beyond the sides of the same. By turning thenut of the bolt the two sectionscan thereupon be clamped tightly uponthe body at any point desired. The advantages `of this construction areas follows: In the iirst place, no openings have to be made in lthe hammock fabric, and the broad bearing-surfaces of the jaws prevent thetearing of the same. To remove the supports, it is only necessary toloosen a single bolt, and said supports may be applied at various pointsalong the edges of the body, so as to be in proper coacting relation tothe ears in which the hooks engage. By arranging the inner surfaces ofthe shanks and jaws in angular relation to each other it will beobserved by reference to Figs. 2 and 3 that the outer ends of said jawswill be forced closer together than the inner ends, thus forming a moresecure clamp upon the IOO fabric. v Another desirable feature to benoticed is the arrangement of the hook upon the lower section, whichthereby relieves the upper section practically of the Weight, orlongitudinal strain, said upper section performing only the function ofa clamp. Perhaps the most important advantage, however, resides in thefact that after the fabric has stretched, as it will do from use, andthe ends become worn it is only necessary to loosen the jaws, fold theworn ends of the fabric, and reclamp the jaws on the folded ends. Thisserves the double function of taking out the slack and presenting newsurfaces to the clamping action of the jaws.

From the foregoing it is thought that the construction,operation,andmany advantages of the herein-described invention will loe apparent tothose skilled in the art without further description, and it will beunderstood that various changes in the size, shape, proportion, andminor details of construction may be resorted to without departing fromthe spirit or sacrificing any of the ad vantages of the invention.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire tosecure by Letters Patent, is-

1. In a ham mock-support, the combination with separate upper and lowersections having shank portions, and jaws which are wider than the shankportions, said jaws being provided in theircoacting faces withtransverselydisposed teeth, of a bolt passingr through the shankportions for securing the sections together, spaced separate dependinglugs carvried by the shank of the upper section and embracing the lowersection, and a depending hook arranged upon one end of the lowersection.

2. In ahammock-snpport, the combination with an ear having an oblongslot there through, of a pair of coacting clamp-sections comprisingshanks having coacting jaws, means for securing the jaws together, and adepending hook located at one end of one shank, said hook being ofsubstantially the same width as theshank to which itisattached, andfitting in the oblong slot of the ear.

8. In a hammock-support, the combination with an ear having an elongatedslot therethrough, of a pair of coacting clamp-sections comprisingshanks having coacting jaws, means for securing the jaws together, and adepending hook located at one end of one section, said hook fitting inthe oblong slot of the ear.

4. In a hammock-support, the combination with separate coactingsections, each section comprising a shank and a jaw, the jaws being eachprovided on one side with suitable transverse corrugations, and on theother side with longitudinal strengthening-ribs,and a clamping deviceengaging the shanks of the sections to fasten them together.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my own I have hereto affixedmy signature in the presence of two witnesses.

DAVID FRANKLIN YOUNGBLOOD.

Witnesses:

R. L. RUSHING, JOHN WooDs.

